Chapter 13– Feast of the Dead –

Amazingly, we made it out in time for the evening feast.

Grisella was a fast and eager student once I got her relaxed. Gifted even, and I had no regrets on that front about our accidental marriage. If you really want to know the details of our lovemaking – and it was lovemaking, not sex – then you have a dirty mind, and I approve. I’m still not going to tell you though. Some things should stay private between wife and wife.

Down the stairs we went, hastily dressed. I ignored the outer bone doors to my left and went with her through the ebony ones. I gave a lustful glance to the vast library as we passed, but there was no time to dally since we wanted food. After all that exercise, assaulting Hela was also a lower priority than dealing with my tummy’s rumblings. Our hands were still bound. Let them wonder at that, I thought with a grin.

One last set of doors and we were in the great hall, filled with people in their best tunics, sitting on benches at the trestle tables. Same layout as when I first faced Hela, minus the dust and most of the cobwebs. I wondered how they managed to go from that “deserted for decades” look to a “fit for feasting” one every night. And presumably back to the creepy version afterward.

A minstrel played a violin nestled against his beard, a sad haunting tune, slowly making his way around the room. His colorful costume had saw-tooth trims of white and red on his long burnt-orange coat. He bowed to me as he passed and kept going.

Deeper within, Hela sat on her throne of bone. Sun had set, so again I couldn’t discern what the stained glass behind her was showing. Come to think of it, there was that whole ruined side of the castle behind what I presumed was an inner courtyard – so how was it ever illuminated? Her impassive gaze paused on us, then continued. She wore a dress of flowing black velvet tonight. Only her bony foot moved, slowly tapping along to the tune. Heh, never would’ve pegged her as the foot-tapping kind.(more…)

Part 12 – Finding Bliss –

I ran a hand over the left side of my head, regretting the loss of my hastily hacked hair. The motion pulled Grisella’s hand and reminded me they were still tied together.

Her eyes widened in alarm. “Do you mean that you didn’t intend to marry me, Gna?” Her legs didn’t quite reach the floor from the edge of the bed where we sat, and one of her feet swished like an angry cat’s tail.

I blinked. “Well, it was a spur of the moment decision…” That wasn’t exactly a lie; just a misdirection. “Perhaps a bit hasty,” I continued, “but I really didn’t want to lose you.“ If I rejected her now, no amount of wool would keep her from Fading – and then I’d be a widow before even getting to consummate my marriage. Not an option.

“You sure?” she questioned, eyes narrowing.

“Quite sure,” I nodded vigorously. “I admire your tenacity and fighting spirit. If nothing else, you’ve got guts, taking down three men and almost offing a goddess…”

Part 10 –A Slight Hitch

I took Grisella by the hand as we walked back to the castle. There were curious gazes upon us, especially when I led her through the resident’s entrance.

While her eyes darted about in the corridors – her first sight of these parts no doubt – she said nothing. A small smile graced her lips all the way to my room.

As she followed me through my doorway, I noticed her demeanor change and I paused. She scanned the room as if she might find another exit. Her gaze stopped at the bed’s quilted blanket. Lowering her eyes, she started pulling on the front lacing of her green kirtle dress.

“Grisella,” I asked, “is something wrong?”

“Ah, no Milady,” she shrugged. “It just be my first time with a woman. It all be fine.”

The Nafnathulur is the the last part of the Skáldskaparmál in Snorri’s Prose Edda. It isn’t present in all the original manuscripts, and thus is usually omitted from modern versions. Some scholars believe it predates Snorri’s work while others say it’s a later addition. Seeing as Snorri Sturluson wrote his book two hundred years after everyone converted to Christianity, I don’t think saying it was written fifty years earlier or later makes a big difference. It may even be his writing, and omitted from copies for whatever reason.

English online versions of the Nafnathulur are very rare, and I can currently find none, so I am making what I have available for those who need it. I believe what’s below was the first of two pages from the now defunct cybersamurai.net. The second page wasn’t useful to my research so unfortunately I didn’t save a local copy, and the Internet Archive only seems to have snapshots in the original language.

I added Old Norse section titles to make finding verses in untranslated versions easier. Any italicized commentary, bolding and coloring are mine. (more…)